Questioning Your Heart
by Sull89
Summary: One shot. Walking with her old friend, Winry finally gets asked the one question that makes her really consider the relationship she shares with Ed. Is it what everyone else thinks, or is Winry still unsure?


With a laugh, the young Rockbell gently knocked her shoulder into Nellie's, "You've been awfully quiet for the past few miles." Winry turned until she was walking backwards and facing her friend, "Something wrong?"

Nellie just smiled and shook her head, "No, Win', not wrong." Swinging the basket resting in the palm of her hand, Nellie grabbed it with her other fingers and then returned her attention to Winry, "There is something I'd like to ask you though." She twisted one foot in the dirt to leave a pattern as she said, "If you don't mind, that is. It's kind of a personal thing."

Winry shot Nellie a curious look, but then she just shrugged and laughed slightly, "Sure, go on, ask." As she waited for Nellie to speak, Winry spun in a little circle, just happy to be out on this gorgeous day with one of her friends. Just as this thought reached her though, Winry slowed her spin almost without realizing it; her two oldest friends had just flashed before her eyes, reminding her again of how she missed them so much.

The automail mechanic shoved those memories to the back of her mind though, and smiled at Nellie. The other girl smiled back at Winry tentatively and then finally opened her mouth, "It's about Ed and Al." Nellie shrugged, "Well, actually… more about the older brother. You know, about you and that older brother."

Winry felt a blush rise to her cheeks, just like she always did when someone mentioned her and Ed in the same sentence. Turning away from Nellie a bit and attempting to will the flush away, Winry grinned slightly all the same as she thought of the short alchemist, "Yeah? What about Ed and me?"

A giggle escaped Nellie, "At least you don't seem to mind me asking; I was kind of worried that you would." When Winry shot the other female an 'Are you crazy? Why would I get mad at you?' sort of look, Nellie's laughter increased, "Okay, maybe that was a silly thing for me to think. Anyway! Well, there's something that I've been wondering about for a few years now…"

When Nellie's voice drifted off, Winry realized that she still must have reservations about voicing her real query. So, deciding that a small nudge was in order, Winry launched herself at Nellie and grabbed the basket, and then backed up as a wicked grin plastered itself across her face, "You don't get this back until you ask me what you're on about! Now you've made me curious, and I want to know!"

Nellie's look of momentary astonishment was soon replaced by one of determination, "Oh no you don't, Winry! Give me that back!" Letting a whooping call echo into the early evening air, Nellie started to chase the automail mechanic, shouting all the while, "Sneaky thief! I won't ask you unless you give it back!"

Winry laughed and turned her head, flicking her blond hair out of her face with one hand. As she ran down the dirt path with Nellie's basket clasped firmly under her right arm, Winry called back over her shoulder, "You can have the basket back after you ask me, I promise!" Grinning like a kid with candy, Winry charged ahead, ever mindful of Nellie's quick footsteps behind her.

Finally, Winry slowed, having reached the path were she and Nellie had to part for the night. Nellie though, had something else planned, and just before Winry turned around she opened her arms wide and half tackled, half hugged the blonde, trapping her arms to her sides and effectively stopping her from getting away, "Ha! I win, Win'! You've got to give up my basket now!"

Winry struggled against Nellie's hold for a moment, but then relaxed, "Alright, alright. You win." A calculating look crossed Nellie's features as she tried to decide whether or not Winry was bluffing, but a few seconds later she did let the girl go free. Holding true to her word, Winry handed Nellie the basket back as she turned and then flopped down onto the path with a smile, "I don't think I've run that far that fast in quite a while." A laugh escaped her, "I need to do it more often, it was refreshing." Patting the dusty ground next to her, Winry nodded at Nellie, "Come on now, pop a squat. You said you'd ask me if I gave you the basket back."

Nellie conceded with a nod; she had said that. Carefully wrapping her skirt around the back of her legs, she then sat down a bit more gracefully than Winry had and then crossed her legs beneath the wide expanse of cloth, "Alright. I suppose it's only fair, huh?" Smiling at Winry's emphatic nod, Nellie closed her eyes as she opened her mouth, "I saw Ed for a moment about two years ago. He was standing in your yard in his boxers, showering, I think... Do you remember?"

Her brow furrowed, Winry bit her lip and nodded as she tried to figure out where Nellie was going with this, "Yeah, I do." Silently, Winry added more to that, 'It was the day I broke his trust and messed with his State watch… The one he told me not to touch. I still can't figure it out though; what did he mean by that inscription?'

"… wondering if you two have become more than just friends." Snapping out of her reverie, Winry blinked the blinding gauze of memory away from her eyes just in time to catch Nellie's last words.

Startled, Winry jumped slightly; she hadn't expected a question like this at all. Drawing her lower lip into her mouth and catching it between her teeth, the blonde thought for a long time, trying to find the proper words to describe what was between her and Ed. Nellie was just about to open her mouth and tell Winry that she didn't have to answer, but right then Winry's lips finally parted, "The relationship between Ed and I is… difficult to explain."

Winry bowed her head slightly and fiddled with the clasped hand in her lap, "We've grown up together, you know. He was always there for me, sort of like a slightly older, albeit much shorter, brother." A half laugh escaped Winry as she thought about what Ed would have thought of that statement before she went on, "I've never actually thought of Edward as my brother though, although I consider Al blood kin."

Her voice drifted off, and it was clear to Nellie that Winry had lost herself in thought again. Nellie waited, watching her friend to see if she would speak again, waiting to see if she would add to her rather cryptic speech. Finally, five minutes after Winry had gone silent, the other young woman finally spoke up, "So, Win'… What exactly does all that mean?"

Resting her forehead in both hands, Winry linked her fingers together on top of her head and stared at the ground, "I'm really not sure, Nell'. He's more than just a friend, he really is." Now Winry paused to shake her head and shrug, "Ed means so much to me, and I worry about him all the time. What he does, where he is, the condition of his auto mail, the condition of his mind and his soul, any thoughts he might have of me… Half the time that's all I can think about."

Now Winry dug her hands further into her scalp, burying her fingers in her hair, "But I don't know if you could call it..." A blush crept across her cheeks, setting the blue in Winry's eyes almost afire as she whispered, "Call it love." With a sigh, Winry turned her eyes up to look at Nellie, "He means the world to me, but I don't know if it's love. To be honest, I know that I do love him, he's my greatest friend, no matter how infuriating he can get, but there's a difference between loving him and being in love with him."

"It's so hard to sort out these feelings." Winry rubbed one leg a bit anxiously; she had never spilled her heart out to anyone like this, but the way Nellie just sat there with attentive eyes and ears somehow opened Winry and let her finally share, "He's my friend. If Edward were more than that I would be the happiest person alive, but then again I'm not sure either of us want it to be any more." Winry's grip tightened on her pants, "How I feel inside keeps changing, but I've never once been able to make sense of it. I love him, but I can't figure out if I'm in love with him, or he with me."

Nellie sighed lightly and wrapped an arm around Winry's shoulders, "There's a fine line between friendship and love." Drawing Winry's head upward, Nellie looked her straight in the eyes as she spoke, "You may not be sure yet, but when you finally manage to find that line, you will be." Nellie winked now and grinned at her companion, "I'm pretty sure I know how it'll all turn out, and if I'm right I think we'll all be happy."

Winry brushed Nellie's last words off with a laugh, but the more she thought about them, the more she really hoped they were right. 'The thin line between friendship and love,' she repeated in her mind. 'I'll find it someday and then I'll know my feeling for sure. I hope Ed finds it too…'

* * *

Review please.  
-Sull 


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